Coming Darkness
by Tree pangolin
Summary: There's a case to be solved once again. After the huge investigation that Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps famously cracked over two years ago, they're both on the trail of a network of criminals plotting to breed a new kind of weapon to terrorize the city of Zootopia with. Plus, they figure out there's more than a friendship going on between them along the way. Fluff and action ensue.
1. Chapter Zero

Benjamin Clawhauser sat at his favourite front desk, in his favourite precinct, surrounded by his favourite officers. Today was perfect, much like every day was. The most optimistic, flamboyant, extroverted, loveable cheetah could be found at that front desk every day. He greeted everyone that entered those glass doors with a huge smile and waved goodbye to everyone that left. He was probably the greatest thing that ever happened to that precinct, because long before he was appointed to that desk, the whole place was about as lively as off-peak afternoon traffic. His two best friends out of the whole precinct would come through those doors at eight o'clock, every morning. Sometimes Judy would bring doughnuts: glazed, frosted, and sprinkled. She knew that was his favourite. Other times, Nick would have something witty to say to him. On the surface, Judy usually didn't even find his remarks funny, but she'd let out a chuckle in her mind. Ben would likely just fall over in laughter.

He looked over at the analog clock on the wall above the doors. He wasn't the best at reading analog, but he managed to read seven fifty-nine after a few seconds. As if on cue, the clock hit eight, and the pair came strolling through the door. Judy quickened her pace, eager to greet Ben. She was carrying a white cardboard box with a clear-plastic window on the front. He was already drooling. They stopped in front of the desk and Judy strained a little to lift the box of doughnuts up to the yellow marble counter. She managed to reach up high enough and dropped them with an audible thump as the cardboard hit the smooth surface. Ben hopped up from his chair behind the desk and squealed excitedly.

"Oh. M. Goodness! Judy, you really didn't have to," He looked down at her with an apologetic expression, but he put a little smile into it at the same time.

"Of course I did, Benny. You deserve them. It must be tiring to be as nice as you are."

"Judy, you know that's just my personality… I'm really glad you got them for me though. Thank you so much!" His expression was purely a smile now.

"Oh, you're welcome, Ben." Judy changed the topic, "Anyway, what's going on today? Parking duty? Patrol?"

Nick thought of a witty joke to throw in, "Is she going on another case that could risk life or death for her again?"

Clawhauser just chuckled at his remark. A bit unusual because he expected the cheetah to burst into laughter like he always did, but it was still a sufficient reaction.

"Oh, actually, Chief Bogo wanted to see you in his office." He already opened the box and had a mouthful of doughnut upon finishing his sentence. A few sprinkles fell to the counter.

Judy looked a little worried. "Oh, cheese and crackers… Is it bad?"

"Nope. You're not in trouble. Don't worry, silly!" Clawhauser assured her, his voice was muffled by the large piece of confection that he hadn't finished chewing. The bunny cop eased up a little.

Nick smirked and chimed in for a moment, "All right, well then we'd better get up there and see him. You don't want him trying to take your badge again, do you, Carrots?"

He started to walk toward the elevator that was on the far side of the lobby, and motioned with a paw for Judy to follow him.

She called back, "Give me a minute, I'll catch up with you!"

Clawhauser waved at Nick before turning back around to look at her. His tail whipped around, brushing against the large, cylindrical post behind him that the front desk was encompassing.

Judy motioned for him to come in closer, like she wanted to tell him something in secret.

The cheetah questioned in a hush, "What's up, Doc?"

"Huh?" Judy looked confused. She never came to understand that inside joke. Was it a reference to something?

"Oops, never mind. I don't even know why I said that," he laughed through his words, "what's on your mind?"

"Hypothetical question… What if Nick and I were, y'know, more than friends?"

Ben tried his best to hold back a huge gasp, and instead just squealed quietly. "Finally! I've been waiting for this since the first day Nick joined the force. I knew it would happen some day!"

Judy's face started to turn red, "Alright, don't get any ideas. It's not like I actually have those feelings for him."

"Well, I dunno. It's definitely abnormal to see predator and prey… Y'know, together. I don't see what's wrong with it, though."

"Don't you think the public would frown upon that? Is it even legal? I mean, I should know, but I only know the laws I arrest mammals for breaking."

"I'm honestly not sure, you'd have to ask someone who knows those kinds of laws. I haven't really studied up on them in a while, since I've just been the guy at the front desk for such a long time. Sorry I'm not much help…" He gasped softly, "Does he know?"

"Know what? I told you, I don't actually _like_ him."

"Oh, yeah, nevermind." He sighed, "But if you actually did… That'd be so adorabl- oh, wait, sorry."

"No, it's fine. You're one of my best friends–out of two–so you can say it."

"Aww, now you've just made me feel really special. Thanks, Judy," he started to blush a little, and turned around for a moment to see Nick in the elevator already, the doors were closing, "I think you should catch up with your boyfriend over there."

Judy looked a bit more frustrated now, and she pursed her lips, "Seriously, it's not a _thing._ "

Clawhauser giggled and apologized, and added, "I hope it goes well," as the bunny started to run toward the elevator. As she neared the thick, stainless steel doors, they were just a few inches from closing before Nick lodged a paw in the crack and pushed the doors open.

"I thought you'd take forever."

Judy slipped through the now wide-open elevator doors, and he let go of them once she was inside. After a five-second delay, the doors began to slowly close again. The button for the third floor was already glowing. It felt like an hour had passed once the doors finally closed.

"What were you talking to him about, anyway?" Nick questioned.

"Nothing important, none of your business, fox." She curtly snapped back. A bit of her frustration with Ben's assumptions still remained.

He recoiled slightly at her answer, and replied, "Whoa, okay, you don't have to sound so irate. It's not like I asked twice."

"You're right… I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Is anything wrong?"

"No. Why? Do you think I'm overreacting because something's wrong?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that's not the case. Don't worry about me."

"Sometimes I do worry, Carrots."

Her heart melted at his words. She hesitated, then turned around and hopped up, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He fell back slightly at the sudden hug, but regained his stance and returned it. At that point, he definitely thought something was out of place, but just went along with it. Somehow, he felt completely reassured that everything was okay.

Judy whispered to him, "Then quit worrying about me. I'm not going anywhere, anytime soon. You used to be so insensitive." She relished the moment for a bit before breaking from the hug. The red number on the display above the elevator doors started to increment.

"You bunnies are always so dramatic."

* * *

The door to Chief Bogo's office resided at the end of the short balcony on the left wing of the third floor. The partners exited the elevator and walked at a normal pace because they weren't nervous. They trusted Clawhauser when he assured them this office visit wasn't for anything bad. To the right of them was a series of doors that led to various rooms. A few of them were interrogation rooms, and a few were offices. To the left of them was a glass fence that lined the balcony, which was painted with a green, tall-grass pattern.

They both came to a stop in front of the chief's office. A door with a pane of frosted glass in the middle stood between them and the interior. Bold, yellow letters spelling out 'Chief Bogo' were painted on it. Nick raised a paw and knocked on the glass of the door.

"Show yourselves in," a deep, accented voice came from the inside at the second knock.

He proceeded to open the door and gestured for Judy to enter first. She thanked him, and he followed her in. They both took a seat in the single yellow chair that sat in front of the large, oak-wood desk. The chair looked belittled by the huge leather one in which the chief sat, but was still oversized enough for both of them to stand on. The cape buffalo eyed them as they came up to his level.

Judy started the conversation, "Hey, Chief! You wanted to talk to us about something?"

"I wanted to talk to you about a case that we've reserved for you two, since we all know you'd probably be more competent at solving it than any of the other officers at this establishment. You know, based on your past work."

"Why is it too difficult for anyone else?" Nick enquired.

"We don't have any leads. I know Hopps is particularly strong in that area. Wilde, you claim to know everyone in this district, so you'll be of good use as well."

Judy didn't want to take a case with absolutely nothing to go on, so she wanted a name at the least. "Do you have a main suspect?"

"Yes. In fact, you probably know him. Remember Jorrad?"

Jorrad Felidae. A panther with a long history of crime. He's been involved with nearly every known gang in Savanna Central, and he's had multiple gangs of his own. Nick and his former partner-in-crime, Finnick, have done business with him before. That dangerous mammal was best known for his work in biological weapons. Nick and Judy worked together a few years ago to put him in prison, and they succeeded in stopping him from releasing a toxic chemical over the city. The whole team at the precinct admired them from that day on and thought of them as the most capable and heroic pair of officers on the force. Once he was incarcerated, he was supposed to be put away for his entire life. A few of his friends weren't happy about that and started to retaliate against the ZPD just a couple of months after his arrest. Crime rates went up and nobody felt safe. The mass-reprisal didn't last long, however, since most of the gang members were put away quickly instead of making any lasting impact, which they surprisingly didn't expect. Nick distinctly remembered the day on which they caught the last felon. He remembered sighing and saying out loud, "Huh. That was easy. I thought they'd put up more of a fight."

Judy immediately remembered who Chief Bogo was talking about, "Yeah, we remember him. Did you let him go, or did he escape?" She smiled jokingly.

The buffalo looked a little irritated, "Of course he escaped. You don't think we'd ever let an inmate just walk out of a maximum-security penitentiary, do you?"

"I guess not… So, when do we get started?"

"Tomorrow. I want both of you to be fully-rested when you start this. I have no doubt in my mind that it will be an arduous task to solve this case."

Nick scoffed, "Don't be so patronizing, chief. I'm pretty sure we can handle it."

Bogo paused for a moment before continuing, "Nevertheless. The rest of the day will be patrol for you. Clawhauser will have the full case file for you in the morning, but I'll warn you now, there's not much in it. Good luck."

The pair jumped down from the oversized chair. They turned to face him, gave a strong salute, and continued walking out of his office. Once again, Nick allowed Judy to exit first. He smiled at her as she walked past him. He glanced at Chief Bogo for a moment, who was staring at him from his desk with a raised brow. Something was odd between them. Why was Nick being so nice to her all of the sudden? Not that he wasn't nice to her all the time, but he was definitely acting more kind than usual. The buffalo lounged back in his chair and thought nothing of it afterward.

* * *

The grey bunny let out a placid sigh as she held the wheel and drove through the sparse afternoon traffic. She stretched her limbs slightly, feeling a few joints pop. The oversized cruiser in which they usually got around Savanna Central was definitely an upgrade from the tiny golf cart-sized vehicle that Judy was assigned to when she was a meter maid. She remembered how much of an amazing feeling it was to finally be recognized by her peers and the force as a fully-capable officer, and not just an insignificant meter maid. Of course, when she still was one, she liked to think of it as a parking enforcement officer because it sounded better. That was the proper name for it, after all.

She noticed that there was a long stretch of road ahead of the car, so she eased back into the soft, well-padded driver's seat, letting out another sigh which was softer this time. She didn't want to sound like she was doing it for attention. Nick was sitting back in the passenger seat to her right. She looked around the interior of the cruiser. A black metal cage stretched around the perimeter of the back of the car. A few claw marks in the back were hardly visible, but she could still spot them when the sunlight shone directly on them. She and Nick would have criminals back there nearly twice a week. In the few years that they'd served in the force, they went from harmless little mammals to the most respected officers in their precinct, and that was one of the reasons why. Almost nothing got in their way.

Although, one slight obstacle was starting to make itself at home inside Judy's mind. She didn't know why she was questioning it all of the sudden; was she starting to develop stronger feelings for Nick? She felt uneasy at the thought, because no predator-prey relationships were recorded in the city of Zootopia for as long as she lived there. Her parents might not have approved of it, either. They probably expected her to find love with another bunny. Frankly, she thought it would end up that way for her ultimately, too.

She looked over at Nick, who was reclined in his seat with his sunglasses over his eyes to shield them from the sun that was beating down on the bulletproof windshield of the cruiser. Instead of dampening the brightness, the thickened glass almost acted like a huge lens, amplifying the sun's rays and illuminating the entire cab of the vehicle much more brightly than normal. Judy didn't usually wear sunglasses, so she just had the sun visor flipped up in the direction of the light.

She broke the silence, "What's up?"

"We're driving, that's what. Other than that, nothing."

"Can I ask you something?"

"You just did."

She rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Alright, smart ass. Tell me something I don't know about you."

"You've known me for, like, three years. What don't you know about me?"

"Touché."

After that, she didn't know anything else to talk about. As she was desperately thinking of new topics to bring up, the fox interrupted her pondering with a question she hoped he wouldn't bring up ever again. He hesitated for a few seconds before letting the words out.

"Do you, uh… Want to talk about this morning? That thing in the elevator?"

She took a minute to think about how to answer him. Did she want to be honest? They were alone in a secluded space, so now would be a pretty good time, but she still didn't feel right just telling him right then and there. She wanted to hold off on it for a bit longer.

"No, I don't really want to talk about it."

"Come on, Carrots. You can't hide things from me forever."

She sighed, "I know. But I _really_ don't want to talk about it."

"Fine. I'm going to find out eventually, though."

The stretch of road ended some time after that, and they were back in the heart of the city. It was around three-thirty in the afternoon. The traffic was a little more dense than the last time Judy observed it. They came to a stop in front of a red light, and a pair of otters were crossing the street. She recognized them as Mr. and Mrs. Otterton, and stuck her head out of her open window to wave at them with a smile. They noticed her and waved back as they neared the other side of the crosswalk. Nick didn't make any similar effort, and instead just smiled at them slightly.

Just before the light turned green, Judy noticed a plethora of blue-and-red-flashing lights coming from the street to the right of her. She leaned into the steering wheel to get a better look, and she saw that the lights were coming from a bunch of hastily-parked cruisers. She activated her turn signal, wanting to get a closer look at the commotion.

* * *

"Hostage situation."

Judy got that abrupt answer when she asked the officer in charge of the standoff, a snow leopard that went by the name of Officer Winston. She also noticed that he had a familiar accent in his voice, similar to Chief Bogo's accent. The leopard was almost three times her size, with a thick, spotted-grey coat and piercing blue eyes, an eye colour unlike any other she'd seen of the same species. She found that a bit interesting about him. She wanted to compliment him for it, but felt that it would be inappropriate for the situation. Not to mention, it might have been a bit awkward.

The leopard further explained to her that there were four hostages being held by a honey badger in that Lemming Brothers bank, and they were very confident that he was in possession of a dangerous type of tranquilizer that was designed not to incapacitate, but to kill. He told her that this type of dart was only issued to special-force teams such as the military, and even the ZPD wasn't allowed to use them. The badger apparently wanted one hundred thousand dollars in exchange for the safe release of the captives. Their top priority, at the moment, was to get those hostages out and capture the criminal. Obviously.

"What are you doing about it right now, Officer Winston?" She questioned him.

"We were waiting for backup, but I suppose the both of you could help us out. We plan to storm the front doors and tranquilize that badger immediately. We can't give him any time to react. Do you think you can help?"

She nodded hesitantly, "Just let me grab my partner and our guns."

She scrambled over to the cruiser, knocked on the passenger-side door, and told Nick to exit the vehicle without any explanation when he opened it. He hopped out of the huge truck and followed Judy to the back of it. She opened the large, heavy doors and jumped up into the miniature prison cell that had their tranq guns safely stowed inside a safebox. She took her keyring out of her pocket and hurriedly flipped through each key, trying to find the black key that opened the box. After trying one of the wrong keys on the lock accidentally, she finally found the right one and got the box open. She took out both guns and carefully tossed Nick's down to him.

He looked confused, "What's going on? Why do we need these?"

She smiled, "We're going to save some lives, as always."

She signaled for him to follow her stealthily as she crouched down, and ran as fast as she could over to the front doors of the bank. The snow leopard and his bison partner were already waiting to burst through those doors as they stood with their backs to it. Nick and Judy could see the concentration in Winston's eyes, and also a small bit of nervousness. He signaled with a paw to kick the doors in on a count of three. When he got to _one,_ he and his partner turned around and kicked as hard as they could at the front doors of the bank. They flew open, and all four officers leapt inside the building.

"ZPD!" The leopard yelled at the top of his lungs.

Judy immediately caught her aim on the badger that was already pointing his own weapon at her, and without warning or hesitation, she pulled the trigger. Everything happened before her in slow-motion. Her heart was racing, and she felt like she was on the biggest adrenaline rush of her life. She watched as the dart from her gun pierced the thin coat and flesh of the honey badger, and he winced in pain as he instantaneously lost all feeling in his nerves. His own tranquilizer gun fell from his paws and down to the hard, tile floor below him. He, himself, fell to the floor at the same time, unable to keep his balance as the anaesthetic slowly circulated his body, nearly paralyzing him.

The world before her started to return to real-time, and Judy stood there for a moment. She felt like she couldn't move as the rush quickly subsided, and her heart rate slowly came down to normal. The three other officers stared at Judy, and they looked utterly surprised at how fast she managed to react.

"Nicely done, Carrots. I'm proud of you." Nick broke the silence with a smile.

"Indeed, that was some quality performance, Hopps." Officer Winston added.

She struggled for breath, her heart still pumping relatively fast in her chest, "Thanks, guys."

One of the hostages chimed in nearby, "Oh, and thank you, too, officers!"

* * *

After they were both debriefed from the unexpected act of heroism they performed earlier that day, Nick and Judy were left to fill out paperwork for the rest of the day. Mostly documents related to it, but there were a few unrelated pieces they needed to complete. Nick finished his early, which was surprising for Judy because she was naturally quicker than any other mammal in every way, including her resting heart-rate.

When Judy looked up at the clock above the door, it read nine o'clock. She realised that she'd stayed four hours past her usual clock-out time, but she didn't really mind. However, it still made her wonder why she was going so slowly. Was it because she was still coming down from that rush of adrenaline at the bank? She assumed so. It didn't really matter to her because she wasn't planning on doing anything later that night. She didn't even feel like hanging out with Nick. She wanted as much sleep as she could get before she took on that case the next morning.

The bunny picked up the last of the papers she'd been filing and tapped them against the desk to straighten them out, then neatly set them down square in the corner of the desk. She got up from her chair and made her way out of the large, cubicle-filled room. All the rest of the lights in the building were already out, and only the office lights were still on. She quickly jumped up and flicked the switch on the wall to turn off the remaining lights and scanned her ID badge at the scheduling computer behind the front desk before leaving the building. She let out a yawn, and decided to walk herself back to her apartment.

A few months after Nick enlisted in the force, he had enough income to afford a proper apartment, which was a fairly large upgrade from the tiny, pipe-filled, underground basement in which he previously lived. Judy suggested that he take the vacant apartment directly above hers on the third floor of her building, because the previous tenant got fed up with Bucky and Pronk's constant noisiness. Nick thought it was an excellent idea, and was more than happy to move in, which is what he did. That allowed him and Judy to walk to work together every morning, and it also meant that neither of them had to take a bus halfway across the city to see each other. If she needed a shoulder to cry on, there was one upstairs, right above her. Plus, his apartment looked almost exactly like hers, so she felt right at home whenever she was staying over at his apartment. She liked it.

As she neared the building, she noticed that Nick's apartment window was completely dark. That was a bit unusual because he liked to stay up pretty late into the night, usually falling asleep around eleven o'clock. She thought he was just trying to get as much rest as she was in order to be ready for their big case tomorrow. She fumbled around for the key to the front door, found it, and went inside. When she got into her apartment, she closed the door and let herself fall onto her bed, letting out a long and elated sigh.

She couldn't sleep. When she tried to close her eyes, they pried themselves open again, as if her eyelids were the exact opposite of heavy. She kept thinking about how she was starting to develop slightly stronger feelings for her partner, and she didn't know why she was starting to feel that way. She needed to see him.

She took the stairs up to the third floor and stopped in front of his apartment door, waiting for what felt like an hour before she knocked quietly. Nothing happened. She knocked again, a little louder this time. Nothing. She knocked a third time, but the door flew open before she could bring her fist to it for the second knock.

A tired-looking red fox was standing in front of her. "What is it, Carrots?"

"Two things. One: why are you asleep so early?"

"I don't know, I guess I just wanted to be ready for tomorrow." _I was right,_ she thought. Nick let out a yawn and stretched his arms, grabbing at each end of the door frame as his paws reached out to it.

"Okay, then. Secondly, I can't sleep."

He sighed, which made him sound a little annoyed, but she knew he could never get annoyed with her. Maybe sometimes, but usually never.

He took one arm away from the doorway and moved to the side, allowing her access to his room, "Fine. You can sleep here. You do this all the time, though."

"I know, I'm sorry, Nick." She hopped over to his bed and threw herself onto it.

"Nothing weird. Promise me."

She smiled, "I promise."

The fox closed the front door and took his place on the same bed, but kept a safe distance away from his partner on the other side of it. It didn't take too long for him to fall asleep again.

Once she could hear him snoring softly, she used the opportunity to carefully crawl over to his side and curl up into his chest, feeling the warmth of his bright-red fur as she inched herself as far as she could into him without waking him up. When she was far enough, she let out a soft sigh of relief.

With his eyes still closed, he smiled and curled his tail around her a little once he knew she was really sleeping.

 _You just can't keep yourself away from me, can you, Carrots?_

* * *

 _ **Author's footnote –**_

 **To everyone who read this story before I rewrite it: I'm sorry. I don't like the way I wrote it terribly in the beginning and better at the end, I don't like how I wrote a half-chapter just to put something out, I just didn't like version one. I'm rewriting Coming Darkness, with virtually the same plot line. Don't hate me, please.**

 **If you're just reading this for the first time: Hi! I'm not keeping to a schedule for new chapters, sorry. I'll release new ones as quickly as I can. Please leave a review to tell me what you enjoyed about this, so I know what stuff to focus on for the next chapters. All of the existing support is much appreciated. Thanks for reading!**

 **Oh, finally, thanks to UmbraTsuki for betareading this, and the rest of my chapters for me. I don't want to look like a jerk not giving _any_ credit for the great comments, suggestions, and corrections he's given me. Go and read some of his stuff on AO3 and FF.**


	2. Reacquainted

_**Author's note —**_

 **You've probably heard of Radiohead. Great music. Give** _ **Daydreamer**_ **a listen. Definitely hits you in the feels, my favourite mood to write in.**

 **Here's a new chapter. I loved the comments I got from a couple of people saying my writing was "adorable." That's one of my goals. Glad to see it being fulfilled. Frankly, I'm having a hard time** _ **not**_ **going full-on fluff.**

 **Here's a good amount of it up front.**

* * *

Throughout the night, Judy pictured a million different things in her dreams. In one of them, she was taking a long walk through the city. Nick wasn't anywhere near her—nowhere to be found—so she was walking alone on her seemingly pointless scenic route through Tundratown, Sahara Square, Savanna Central, and the Rainforest District. The rush-hour traffic, the hundreds of mammals passing her on the street without paying any attention to her, the absence of her partner; it was just her mind painting the image for her… And she felt lonely without him.

In another, she relived the first day of her life in Zootopia. She remembered how that day started in her hometown and ended in her new apartment. She hugged her parents tightly for a good thirty seconds. Neither Judy, nor her mom or dad wanted the moment to end. Tears of joy streamed from their eyes as the soon-to-be bunny cop rolled out of the station in Bunnyburrow, en route to the biggest opportunity of her life. The separation anxiety already started to set in when she was halfway to the city.

She remembered the first time she met Nick, her first day on the job. That wasn't exactly a situation to be proud of, since the first time they were introduced to each other was during one of his cons. She was merely a pawn in his less-than-enormous scheme, and she recalled how hurt she was to realize he was just using her. Even so, she probably wouldn't be one of the best officers in the ZPD if it weren't for him. Had she never trusted a fox for once, her life would be totally different. She wouldn't still be an officer. Ultimately, she might have just been a carrot farmer, exactly like her parents wanted.

She thought, _Thank goodness I wasn't._

She awoke rather abruptly with her eyes still closed. The same warmth of Nick's fur was still surrounding her; he'd remained completely still through the whole night. She could feel herself squeezing something soft between her arms. She opened one eye slowly to get a better look at what it was: a bright-red tail. She smiled. A part of her mind hoped that he didn't wake up in the middle of the night and realize that they were in a slightly compromising position, but she soon realized that if he hadn't withdrawn it while she was asleep, he probably never found out… Unless he was secretly fine with it.

Both of her eyes were wide open now. She lifted her head, ears pinned back, and let her eyes wander around Nick's apartment. It looked almost identical to her own in terms of floor plan, but there wasn't a whole lot of furniture in the small den. It looked as though someone was moving out of the place. His previous residence was a basement filled with rusty pipes and all-brick walls, and there was rarely any light at all inside, save for a few dusty cage lamps. This apartment was definitely an upgrade, but not so much regarding aesthetics. He could have at least put a painting on the wall or a plant in the corner.

 _Maybe someday I'll teach him a thing or two about interior decorating._

She felt Nick's breathing start to quicken, and he began to stir as she kept holding onto his tail, not wanting to part with it. He opened his eyes slightly to see the bunny lying so closely to him, and he noticed that she was hugging his tail, failing to pretend that she was still asleep. He sighed through his snout and tried to speak, but his words came out as barely-articulated moans.

"Didn't I make you promise nothing weird would happen?" She grimaced slightly in response, seeing that her charade was easily broken.

"Yeah, and I kept my promise, didn't I? Would you classify this as 'weird'?"

"Mmhm, I'd say this is kinda weird."

"Aww, but this thing is so fluffy! I wish I could make an entire blanket out of your fur," she giggled, "I bet it'd be a lot nicer than Mr. Big's rug."

The slightly-irritated fox tried to pull his tail away with little effort, and Judy didn't find it challenging at all to keep a firm grip on it between her arms. He was going to have to persuade her to let go. He strained to turn his head and look at the alarm clock on the wooden side table. Six seventeen in the morning. They had a little time before they were due at work.

"Can I please have my tail back?"

"Can I please _not_ give it back?"

"Why're you so attached to me all of the sudden, Carrots?"

"Am I not always this attached?" She was desperately trying to justify her actions.

"No, you never are. Now, I said 'please,' so can you let go?"

"You're going to have to fight me for it."

"I'd rather not, and we're going to be late if you keep this up. Drop the game, Carrots."

She glanced at the clock, "We have a little time to waste."

He'd had enough at that point, and he was genuinely annoyed with her. He abruptly jumped up off the bed, and the weight difference was enough to make the mattress shoot the bunny a few feet into the air, causing her to both yelp and lose her grip mid-flight. The fox just smiled, laughing hysterically on the inside at her reaction.

He could never stay annoyed with her for long.

She regained her composure a few seconds after landing back on the bed and frowned at him. "Hey, that wasn't fair!"

Still smiling, he pointed at himself, "Sly fox," and then pointed at her, "dumb bunny."

She groaned and fell back onto the covers as he smoothed out the fur of his tail. He didn't hesitate at all to decide who would get a shower first, because he felt that he deserved it after the awkwardness that Judy caused between them.

Of course, neither of them found it weird. Nick was just really good at hiding it.

* * *

Despite what happened earlier that morning, the partners still managed to make it to the precinct on time… Or, rather, a few minutes late. Nick didn't care too much about it, but Judy started to think that she shouldn't have put up so much of a fight while they were supposed to be getting ready. He assured her that it was fine, and that it wouldn't be the end of the world to ruin a perfect record of eight o'clock entrances, but she still stressed over it. He knew how much she'd talked about beating herself up over it, if it ever happened.

She rambled on about possible reasons for being late, "Maybe we should have skipped coffee."

"No, Carrots, you know we can't skip that. I'd be dragging you in here if that were the case," he grinned, "and we both know the real reason we're late."

All he got in return was an irritated groan, "Don't remind me."

Clawhauser noticed their arrival and waved at them happily, as always. The bunny found herself smiling and waved back, as if his attitude was contagious. How did she go from being stressed over their lateness, to being her usual happy self, in just a few seconds?

"Hey, you two! How's my favourite pair of officers?"

"Late for work, that's how we're doing." Nick smiled slyly, knowing his remark would only tease his partner more. He loved to rub it in her face when she shamed herself over little things like being a few minutes late.

The cheetah smiled, playing along with his teasing a little, "Huh, I noticed. What held you up?"

"She's got a thing for me, that's all. No big deal." He could feel her punching his arm, which elicited a chuckle from him. Sometimes he questioned why she didn't punch him harder.

"I _do not._ "

Neither of them noticed it, but Ben was letting out an elated sigh as he held his head in his slightly-outstretched paws, elbows resting on the desk. He mumbled to himself, "You two are _so_ adorable."

"What was that, Benny?" Judy snapped him out of his own daydreaming.

"Oh, n-nothing…" He took a deep breath for a moment, "So, are you ready for this tiny case file Chief Bogo asked me to give you?"

"It can't be _that_ bad. Pass it over."

He inhaled sharply through his teeth, showing the pain he felt for them having to take on such a difficult case, and slid the red folder across the marble of the desk. She jumped up to grab it right before it fell over the edge.

"Nice catch." The fox quipped. He earned a slight scowl from her, like she was taking it as an insult because it sounded sarcastic. "Oh, come on. I meant it."

She slowly opened the folder in anticipation of at least a hint of information. Her small bit of hope was nullified as soon as she saw the one piece of paper clipped to the card stock.

 _Main suspect: Jorrad Felidae_

 _Evidence: None_

 _Leads: None_

 _Possible connections: None_

… _Not even a photo?_

It was like reading the same case file from her first day on the force. Except, the name of a criminal mastermind was inscribed on it in monospace letters instead of the name of a kidnapping victim. That, and she had a lot more time on her paws than just forty-eight hours. Memories of the malicious jaguar's countless infringements came pouring into her brain as she read the name. Hopefully the folder would be filled with possible info in due time.

Nick whistled in awe at how little they had to go on, "Got any other cases we can trade that in for?"

Clawhauser laughed at his comment, "Nope, sorry."

"Good, because we don't even need a new one," Judy wore a confident expression, "I already have some ideas."

Her partner looked a bit surprised. "Wow, I can't believe you're on top of this. Lead the way, Carrots."

She waved behind her as they both walked off toward the door. The bunny cop had a strut in her step, like she was almost overly-excited to be taking on this case. It was disconcerting to Nick that she was so optimistic about it, he thought she was simply full of false hope, or maybe she was trying to hide the fact that she really didn't have any ideas at all. Clawhauser trusted that she'd get them off to a good start.

He shouted across the lobby, "Good luck! I think you're gonna need it!"

* * *

"How about I drive for a change? You need a break."

"I always drive, and I have reasons for it, Wilde."

"Like what? You know I have a valid licence, right?"

She laughed half-heartedly, "Knowing you, it's probably forged."

"You wound me, Carrots!" He held a paw up to his chest. "Come on, give me a chance. Besides, you'll be able to better concentrate on what we're going to do about this monstrous case."

"Alright, fine. I'll take shotgun. Happy?"

He smiled, "Ecstatic."

When they got to the cruiser, they each boosted themselves up with the help of the running boards on either side to open the oversized doors, and jumped up into the cab of the zebra-painted truck. Nick found himself having to adjust the seat because it was already set to accommodate his partner's size, and he felt squished in the tiny amount of space she needed when she drove.

"Alright, where are we headed?" He finally questioned after moving the seat back.

She hesitated, knowing the question would bring back unwanted memories.

"Do you still talk to Finnick?"

His face scrunched up at the name. He hadn't seen his old 'business partner' in the last year and a half. That fennec fox would most likely punch him in the face on the spot if he ever saw Nick again, because anyone could imagine how heartbreaking it is to never hear from your _only friend_ ever again.

"Right… Finnick." He looked down blankly, and Judy started to feel bad for asking.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. We don't have to go and see him if you don't want to."

He was about to say no, but he realised that that their only possible source of information at that point was who Judy was suggesting, so he decided to take a chance. How bad could it hurt, right?

He started to look up, returning to a neutral expression. "No, it's fine. I think I still remember where he usually parks his van."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, a hundred percent. The worst he could do is punch me in the face, but I sorta deserve it anyway."

"Let's hope that doesn't happen."

"Yeah…" They rolled out of the parking lot. "And off we go."

"Don't crash this thing."

"You have trust issues."

* * *

The rush-hour traffic was just dying down as they were about five minutes away from the secluded alleyway in which Finnick usually parked his rusty old van. Nick wouldn't be surprised if the fennec was still living in that thing, because ever since he left him to join the ZPD, he seemed to be doing even worse than when they were still working together. Finn seemed to be merely a sidekick to his taller counterpart back then.

The cruiser pulled over to the side of the street, which was devoid of any parking meters. This area of the city was known to live and breathe crime. Never a dull moment here, but never a good one, either.

"Alright, this is the place."

"Wow. He couldn't have picked a better place to stay."

"You want me to go first?"

"Of course I do. You don't want your favourite bunny to get hurt, do you?"

"Oh, what would I _ever_ do if I lost you?" He sounded completely sarcastic.

"I can think of a few scenarios."

"Yeah, so can I," without thinking about it, he exposed himself a little, "so don't go anywhere, okay?"

"I'm always here for you." She tenderly placed a paw on his for a moment, but he quickly pulled away and played it off after realising his mistake. He was starting to break his own rule.

 _Don't let anyone see that they've gotten to you, Nick._ He repeated to himself in his head.

… _Not even her._

Even so, he promised that one day in the future, he'd finally be able to be vulnerable around her. Not today, though.

"Anyway," he sighed, "I guess I'll go and see if he's home."

She watched him leave the cruiser and make his way down the long alleyway, toward Finnick's lonesome van. Even in daylight, the whole place looked a little daunting. Trash was littered everywhere, because somehow the mammals that left it there couldn't see the copious amounts of dumpsters lining the brick walls. It looked like a dump. Probably the way Finnick liked it most. The further Nick walked, the darker it became, save for the light at the far end given off by the fennec's van. A look of unease made its way to Judy's face.

He finally stood in front of the van's side door, contemplating whether or not he should knock. Now, he was really thinking about how much it would hurt. There was no doubt in his mind that Finnick was going to hit him out of pure anger for leaving him such a long time ago. He nervously looked at Judy, who was still sitting in the cruiser, poised to strike if things went bad. He knew she had his back. That's what friends— partners were for.

He gave her a thumbs-up, the nervous look still plastered on his face. He took a deep breath, then another, and took two hesitant steps up to the door. He knocked quietly. At the same time, he wondered why there wasn't any deafeningly-loud music coming from the inside to drown out the sound of the knock. The sound of soft knuckles hitting metal echoed slightly through the alley.

It felt like an hour had passed.

Then, suddenly, the door swung open, and the retaining lock clicked it into place to prevent it from accidentally sliding shut. Startled, Nick slowly turned his gaze down to the ground, where a disgruntled-looking Finnick stood. He wielded a wooden baseball bat in one of his tiny paws.

 _This is going to be worse than I thought._

"What. The hell. Are you doing here." The fennec hissed through clenched teeth.

Nick started to feel himself tense up, "Hey, Finn! How's life? You still managing?"

That's when he snapped. He didn't get the answer he was looking for, and he wasn't going to deal with Nick's act. He quickly swung the bat straight into the red fox's chest, which was still padded sufficiently by the bulletproof vest he was wearing, but he winced and fell to the ground in pain nonetheless. He stifled a cry for help, knowing that it was technically what he deserved. Frankly, it was still a bit harsh.

"Why are you here!? After the _years_ you left me to rot." The smaller fox's deep voice was in a much more angered tone now, and he bellowed the words down at him.

Judy watched in horror from a distance as Nick lay there on the ground, clutching his lower abdomen, eyes glued shut. She could have sworn that she saw a tear fall from one of them. This was probably the most vulnerable form of Nick she'd ever seen, and admittedly, she didn't like seeing it.

"I… Just wanted to c-catch up with an old friend…" He could barely speak, because it was still difficult for him to get air out of his lungs. The blow had managed to wind him pretty badly.

A faint voice came from far away, "Nick, are you okay?!"

"Great… Fine…" He struggled to call back to her. He slowly put a thumb up in the air.

Finnick growled and added, "Stay outta this."

He continued, facing Nick, "Why hadn't you done that earlier, then?"

"I was… An idiot… I put my new life before my best friend."

"Sorry, I couldn't hear you, say that first part again."

"I-I'm an idiot."

"Yes you are."

Finnick had already eased up a little, and the pain in Nick's chest had subsided slightly. He offered a paw down to him and helped him up, patting him on the back reassuringly. Nick kept holding an arm around his abdomen.

"And we both know that's not why you're here." He pointed at the cruiser with his gaze. Judy was already out and running toward her injured partner.

"Nick! Are you okay? Anything broken?" She still sounded a little worried. "I was going to come and tase him if he hit you again."

Finnick scoffed. "Typical." He threw the bat to the ground.

"I'm fine, Carrots." He allowed her to place one of his arms over her shoulder to support him, "Thanks."

She shifted her gaze over to Finnick, who was eyeing her unusually. "Don't you think that was a bit harsh?"

He scoffed, "Of course not. He deserved that."

"Yeah, he's right. Seriously, don't worry about it. I'll be fine."

A moment later, Finnick felt the need to ask the question.

"So, this is your new girlfriend, huh?" He smiled.

"We're not a thing." Judy droned. She already figured that everyone she knew would soon be asking the same thing.

He chuckled, "Too bad, 'cause Nick hasn't had any action in a long time."

"Ugh. Shut up." Nick threw back. Judy giggled as well, but he just rolled his eyes.

He added, "Neither have you, buddy."

* * *

The inside of the fennec's red van was just as much of a dump as the alleyway in which it resided. Empty cans and wrappers littered the floor and passenger seat. He saw that seat as the perfect garbage collector since Nick wasn't staying in there with him anymore.

Finnick gnawed on something that looked vaguely familiar to a steak while Judy recalled everything they knew about Jorrad and the case they were just put on. Meanwhile, Nick was recovering beside her, not adding much to the conversation.

"…So that's why we came for your help." She finished, then added, "Do you think you know anything about him?"

He thought for a second, putting a paw to his chin, "Yeah. I think I remember a gang leader, went by that name. Didn't like putting up with a whole lotta mammals' nonsense."

"Do you… Remember anything about him? Where his gang usually hung out?"

"Hmm… I'd have to talk to a few guys I know. They'll know more than me."

"Alright… Should we come back, say, tomorrow?"

"Nah, don't bother, I'll come to you. I've been to that precinct enough to know how to get there myself."

"Great! See you tomorrow, then. It's getting late, anyway. We're almost done for the day."

He chuckled, "In more ways than one, am I right?"

An almost fully-recovered Nick groaned, "Can we go before he makes this any more awkward?"

"Oh, shut up, Wilde. You _know_ that you're a couple waiting to happen."

"I'm not exactly counting on it." _Wait, am I?_ He silently questioned himself.

Finnick motioned for Judy to come in closer for a second, and whispered something into one of her tall ears, inaudible to Nick. He became a little irritated at the possible secret being kept from him.

"What is it?"

She giggled, backing away from the fox and returning to face Nick, "Nothing."

He groaned, "Now you're keeping secrets from me?"

"No, it's not a big one. I wouldn't even say it's a secret. More of a surprise."

"Whatever. Let's get going." He took Judy's paw and opened the door, exposing the alleyway on the outside.

She called to Finnick on their way out, "I hope you get some good info for tomorrow!"

"I'll try, Cottontail."

They both made their way back to the cruiser, which was still intact right where they left it, almost surprisingly. Judy told Nick that she'd drive this time, because he still had some recovering to do. He agreed without reluctance and made himself as comfortable as possible on the ride back to the precinct. At some point, he remembered falling asleep on the rather long returning trip, waking up after what felt like twenty minutes of uninterrupted napping.

Once they were back, they reported to Clawhauser about their possible informant, and that they would resume the case tomorrow due to a lack of any other evidence or leads. The rest of the day, as always, was paperwork. Tons of it. Then, at the end of the day, they clocked out and walked back to the apartment together. Judy was carrying something in a white plastic bag.

"So, what were you whispering to Finnick earlier? And what's in the bag?"

"Oh, right. He just told me to get you one of these." She pulled a blueberry pie out of the bag. A concave, clear-plastic top shielded it from Nick. If it weren't there, he would have already stolen a slice.

"Really? You could have just told me."

"You want it or not?"

"Of course I do."

"Great, because there's a catch."

"Oh boy." He didn't want to ask, but then again, he was going to get that pie even if it meant doing something regrettable. "What's the catch?…"

"I get another sleepover. And we're going to be a bit lenient on the 'nothing weird' policy."

"How lenient is lenient?"

"You'll see."

"Yeah, I'm not sure I want to see."

She smiled deviously. "Do you want the pie, or not?"

* * *

It turned out to be almost the same as the night before. Judy was curled up on the inside of his chest, and her head rested on one of his arms. The tail was off-limits, however, which wasn't her favourite rule, but she got over it.

"I guess this isn't as bad as I thought."

"And you got a pie for it. How easy was that?"

"You know I can't say no to a pie. That was a pretty mean bribe, Carrots."

"Finnick suggested it, none of this was my idea."

"So, he's basically a wingman now?"

"I guess you could say that."

He didn't really mind the closeness. It was definitely a change from his usual routine. He enjoyed her company a fair amount, and didn't really see anything wrong with it as long as it was strictly platonic. Although, he figured that Finnick would have intended for it to be the opposite of platonic. He silently thanked his old friend for the set-up.

 _I guess I can't stay away from you, either, Fluff._

* * *

 ** _Author's footnote_** _ **—**_

 **Holy cow! I'm overwhelmed by the flood of people coming to read this fic once I put out chapter two. Thanks for the support, friends.**

 **And of course, UmbraTsuki helped out a whole lot with his comments. There were some minute details that he highlighted just to make the personalities of the characters feel more true-to-canon. Thanks, man!**


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